Collections & Research

Here in the Library at Amgueddfa Genedlaethol Caerdydd - National Museum Cardiff we have two very rare examples of  original 1920s iron roller racking.  They are still in perfect working order, although do get incredibly heavy when full. The stacks always remain cool in the summer, which is good as the Library can get very stuffy. However, they are bitterly cold throughout the winter, and on a dark wintry afternoon one might almost say... "spectrally" so!

June 7 Update

Eventful couple of days. Received a call yesterday that a young Peregrine was on the ground near City Hall. Directions weren't brilliant so had to go hunting around and finally found a young male hunkered down at the edge of one of the footpaths in Alexandra Gardens, under some overhanging vegetation. Amazingly you could walk past within a couple of feet and it didn't move. He was duly picked up and taken back to the roof of City Hall at the base of the tower where he was fitted with a BTO ring and a colour-ring Blue FH, the first photo is of him looking lass than happy with his experience but hopefully it will keep him out of trouble until he can fly strongly enough to gain height.

Then this morning I had another call from the RSPB to say that a young Peregrine was on a statue in King Edward VII Avenue. I met up with Phil Pinder and there was the bird sat on the statue (second photo). This one was unringed so we knew it was a different bird to yesterday, I tried to catch it so it could be ringed but wasn't quite quick enough and it flew off strongly. Which is a good thing as it suggests it should survive. Apparently it had been seen feeding earlier so it's good to know that the parents are feeding them even quite some way from the tower.

No sign of the young female today though.

June 6 Update

All three youngsters are practically fully grown now and one of the males has even left the nest ledge. He was seen on a roof above the west entrance to City Hall yesterday morning where he will be safe enough.

The other two, a male and a female, could be seen wing flapping and getting themselves ready for their first flight. It won't be long before they're out and about.

So far, so good, although the next two or three days are still perilous for the youngsters as they don't have the strength to get back to the higher ledges in the first few days after their first flight. Fingers crossed that all three will be safe and fledge this year.

A recent purchase and what a cracker! This manuscript diary is titled Tour of Wales and the Marches beginning on 22 August 1827 and consists of 55 pages of exquisite handwriting and ink sketches presumably by Eliza Rand. We say presumably as she hasn’t acknowledged herself as the author but as one of  the only two females on the tour, she mentions her sister Georgiana on p. 32, so it’s a simple enough process of elimination. The account of the tour includes several pen and ink drawings, including a view of the Havod Arms, a harper at Abergele and Beddgelert church. However, of most interest is a drawing of their guide at Cadair Idris, Richard Pugh, posing in front of his cottage, with staff in hand, wearing a goatskin 'mountain dress' and sporting a headress of goat's skull and horns! This was the traditional costume of the Welsh guides [believe it or not] but depictions of it are very rare indeed.

We hold a good selection of 18^thand 19^th century tours of Wales as they are an invaluable resource of historical information. Many of them are filled with comments and anecdotes on everyday subjects such as chosen routes; care and maintenance of coach and horses, conditions of roads, personalities met en route, quality of inns, descriptions of architecture and [of course!] the weather. For example, this particular diary ends with a summary of the places visited, the number of horses used and the number of turnpikes.  

This is just one of the many reasons I love being a librarian; opening a recently catalogued donation [published 1930] to find these beautiful butterfly wings pressed between the pages! Who knows how long they have nestled there undisturbed?